Attic Insulation Batts Vs Blown

The answer is it depends.

Attic insulation batts vs blown. Compared to blown in insulation batts can reach a resistance rating r factor of over 3 1. Both blown in and batt roll insulation can be installed in different areas of a home including the attic and the walls. Often times a combination of the two is ideal. Disadvantages of batt insulation.

That makes it fast to install but costlier than batt insulation. Attic insulation is accomplished with either fiberglass blankets batt or blown in insulation. Instead of cutting and stapling rolled up layers into place they get to spray the insulation where it needs to go. With this method the insulation is simply blown onto the attic floor and no matter what type of joists studs or wiring that may be in play the blown insulation will naturally form itself tight around any of these creating a layer of strong insulation.

Blown in insulation requires a professional. You also don t see any gaps that allow you to see all the way down to the ceiling drywall. Blown in insulation is much easier on installers. Fiberglass insulation is available in blown in form and so is cellulose which is referred to as loose fill cellulose.

Any existing batt or roll insulation in the attic should have the facing against the attic drywall floor or no facing at all. Batts you must also examine the r values. Blown in varieties however typically reach a peak of around a 2 8 r factor. Insulation should be rolled out perpendicular to the joists and unfaced rolls should be used.

The maximum rating of batt insulation is around 4 2. When comparing blown in insulation vs. You d need a thickness of. In short there is less chance of error with blown insulation as compared to batts.

Notice how you don t see any of the ceiling framing down at the ceiling level. When insulating an attic space many homeowners ask us which is better blown in or batt insulation. Batt insulation take time to read this column. The photo above shows an attic insulated with blown cellulose.

That s because blown insulation is great at filling the gaps and giving you a good complete layer of insulation. Depending on the material of the insulation the installation method may vary slightly. Current energy standards recommend the installation of a first layer of craft faced moisture barrier fiberglass batt. While the manufacturer will state the actual r value of the insulation that you use according to the department of energy you can expect an r value range between 2 9 and 3 8 per inch of thickness for standard fiberglass batts and between 3 7 and 4 3 for high performance fiberglass batts.

The biggest disadvantage of batt insulation is that it does not fit well in non standard spaces. I don t know about that but it s a common insulation material that works much better in the blown form than in batts. Batt or rolled insulation or blown loose fill insulation fiberglass or cellulose can be installed on top of old insulation. Before choosing blown vs.